My Bubbie's Sweet Tooth

For those of you that don't know, Bubbie is yiddish for grandma. And my grandma has a bigger sweet tooth than myself--I've seen your stash of chocolate in your pantry grandma.

If there is one thing my grandma has always had in her home--that's jewish pastries. Rugelach, hamentashens, mandel bread you name it, she has it. 

Since I love the desserts she always has, I decided to make mandel bread, my favorite jewish dessert. Mandel bread is similar to biscotti, but softer like a cookie. There is nothing better then mandel bread and a fresh cup of coffee. 

• Ingredients 
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 
• Cinnamon sugar for dusting 
• 
  
• Directions
• 1. Mix together oil and sugar, then add eggs one at a time. After the eggs are blended in, add the vanilla. Mix together all dry ingredients in a separate bowl then add to sugar/egg mixture.
• 2. Once the dough is smooth, add the chocolate chips. 
• 3. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours. 
• 4. Once dough is chilled, oil your hands (with pam is fine) and form 4 long rows with the dough on an un-greased cookie sheet (lined with parchment paper). 
• 5.  Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. While the bread is baking, place cinnamon sugar in a bowl. 
• 6. When the timer goes off, pull the bread out and let it sit for 5 minutes. Don't turn the oven off. 
• 7. Cut the bread into chunks and roll in cinnamon sugar and then put back on the baking sheet. 
• 8. Crisp the pieces in the oven for 3-5 minutes and then pull out and turn the oven off. 
• 9. Let the mandel bread pieces cool and then enjoy! 

•                           

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Why Do You Workout?

I am always asked,"why do you workout?"

Well, the truth is I grew up in a home where brownies, cookies, and cupcakes were always available. Which is why I find it important to feed your body right while indulging every once in a while. Hence, my sweet tooth.

Throughout middle school is when I really started my weight gain. Come the summer of 7th grade I was expanding like no other. I will never forget going into American Eagle and buying my first pair of capri's in a size 14. Mind you, I was only 13-years-old. I was also very active growing up doing softball, cheerleading, (I won't get into how awful I was) basketball, and girl scouts. The problem was--I just loved to eat.

When I realized my weight gain was going to do nothing more than just increase I did something about it. I got on the treadmill and I ran. I started running five days a week for a mile. Over the course of three years, I increased my workout from 1 mile five days a week to 3-4 miles five days a week.

I did change my eating habits--as I realized toaster strudels were not the healthiest choice. The problem is, when you're 13-years-old, you don't know what's healthy and what isn't healthy.

To me, I thought "healthy" was only green, gross, or made me gag--wrong!

I quickly learned how many calories to consume to loose 1-2 lbs a week and what to feed myself to keep my metabolism up. The secret is, eating every two hours is very important. Even if you're not hungry, eat a handful of almonds or a spoonful of peanut butter.

So when it comes to, "why do I work out?" The truth is--I do it for myself. So when you have you're moment when you realize it's time to get fit, remember one thing--you're doing it for yourself and no one else.

And always remember to indulge every once in a while.

I would love for you to share your story with me--why do you workout?

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Bananas for Yonanas!

This past summer I visited a place in Delaware called, Annie's Banannies that was something I had never seen before. They took frozen bananas, put them into a machine, and it came out life soft serve. I thought the idea was crazy. Not only was I confused, but I had to try it! So I took my sister, boyfriend, and myself to this shop and it was delicious. I was satisfied just like I would be if I had some vanilla soft serve, but this was pure fruit, no additives!

This brings me to my new gadget, the Yonanas maker that I found at Bed Bath and Beyond. It does the same thing I saw at Annies Bannannies, which made me more than excited. So I bought it! I then picked up a bunch of bananas and got to peeling and freezing. You can also use any other kind of fruit as long as it's frozen for 24 hours. I froze bananas and strawberries and then the next day I tried my baby out. The frozen fruit needs to sit out for about 10-15 minutes or the machine will jam (yes, I was impatient and experienced this). I used 2 bananas and 4 strawberries and made a good serving for myself and my mom. I topped mine with granola (just a sprinkle) and my mom used chocolate syrup. The nice thing about this treat? It's a serving of fruit, no extra sugars, and is around 100 calories a serving. Who would turn that down? The picture of my first try is below! The possibilities are endless, I am going to use pineapple and mango next...yes please!

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Best workout for 2013

Hi Everyone! Hope you have been enjoying the New Year. As of 2013, I have been like the rest of society and I am trying to get in the best shape I can. I have increased my mileage from 3 miles to 3.6 and I have made my workouts more intense. If you are up for the challenge, follow this workout!

In my first posting, I showed an example interval workout, but I wanted to show another one and give more details about this workout. Interval training or HIIT (High intensity interval training), is a shorter workout that is more intense and burns more calories. I currently do HIIT 3 days a week (M,W,F) and then a light jog/walk/run 2 days a week (T,TH). My HIIT workout is about 38-40 minutes long and I complete 3.6 miles. I have already noticed within a week in a half my lower stomach becoming more toned. I expect it will take a month before I really see a major difference, so please be patient!

Minutes         Speed
0-4                 4.0
4-6                 6.0
6-7                 7.0
7-8                 4.0
8-10               6.0
10-11             8.0
11-12             4.0
13-15             6.0
15-16             7.0
16-17             4.0
17-19             6.0
20-21             8.0
22-23             4.0
23-25             6.0
26-27             7.0
28-29             6.0
30-31             8.0
31-32             4.0
33-35             6.0
35-36             7.0
37-40             4.0

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Cake Pops

Craving sweets, but have a New Years resolution? Cake pops are a great solution. It's basically a bite of cake on a stick. Did I mention moist cake covered in hardshell candy coating? Now I have your attention. I made these cake pops for our Hanukkah party this year, but they can be easily changed depending on the occasion. I will say they are tricky at first, so take your time!

What you will need: 

• Boxed cake mix, of your choice, I used french vanilla 
• Eggs 
• Vegetable Oil 
• 1 tub of vanilla icing 
• Wilton candy melts, color of your choice 
• Lollipop sticks 
• A block of styrofoam 
• Sprinkles of your choice 

Directions: 

• Bake cake as directed using specified amount of eggs, oil and water. 
• Once cake comes out use a knife to cut the cake into 4 even pieces, let it cool completely. 

• After the cake is finished cooling, take a large bowl and one chunk of the four pieces. Begin crumbling the cake into the bowl. Crumble very fine. Continue will all four pieces. 

• Once the cake is all crumbled, take 3/4 of the icing and use a spoon to mix it into the crumbled cake. Use the back side of the spoon to mix so that the mixture becomes smooth. 
• Use your hands to roll 1 1/2 inch cake balls. Place the rolled balls on a lined baking sheet and place them in the freezer for 10 mintues. You do not want the balls to freeze! 

• While the balls are in the freezer, set out your sprinkles into bowls and begin melting the candy melts into a bowl or cup. 
• When the 10 minutes is over, take the balls out and dip each lollipop stick into the melted chocolate and stick into the balls. This allows the stick to stay put inside the balls before you dip. This is very important! Or the balls will just fall into the icing.

• After all of the sticks are dipped and cooled take each cake pop and dip it into the icing, let the excess drip off, and then stick it into the styrofoam. 

• After it is stuck in the styrofoam, use sprinkles to decorate. You can either roll the cake pop in the sprinkles or just keep them in the styrofoam while you sprinkle. 

• Complete dipping and sprinkling the cake pops until all are placed in the styrofoam to cool. 
• Once all the cake pops are cool, place them in tupperware and store in the fridge. When you are ready to serve them take them out thirty minutes before and display in a fun way! 

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I'm back!

I am incredibly sorry for not posting recently! In short, I am now a college graduate from the University of Maryland, I traveled to Mexico where I enjoyed 80 degree weather and plenty of margaritas, and my computer crashed, womp, womp.  I just replaced my hard drive and re-installed everything, except for my pictures. Anyone ready for a posting about cake pops? Before I left for Mexico, I made some cake pops for the holidays and everyone raved about how moist they were. Stay tuned! Tomorrow I will post my cake pop recipe, as well as a new workout to burn calories and be fit and toned for spring.

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Exercise on Vacation?

I have finally finished college and as a graduation present my boyfriend and I are headed to Mexico for a getaway. Many of my friends go away during winter break to escape the cold with their family. I was thinking about it though, am I really going to workout? I am the person that wakes up everyday by 6-7 AM to hit the gym for a run on the treadmill, but I will be in paradise, which will make getting up that early very hard. I am not sure how many of you plan on going away this winter, but even if you don't these are some exercises you can do while on vacation this winter or coming summer.

Walking on the beach: Walking in the sand burns more calories than walking on the flat ground. Some experts say you can burn twice the amount of calories! Be careful to not overdue it shin-splints can occur if you run.

Activities such as snorkeling, bike rides, or hiking: Put on the snorkeling gear and swim some laps to burn calories while enjoying the beautiful scene of the ocean. Bike rides are a great lower body workout. The legs get the most out of this workout. The more you peddle and the more calories you will burn. Hiking is a great full body workout where you can use your upper body and lower body strength to push yourself to keep climbing!

If the hotel has a gym: I think it is best to keep your physical fitness up while on vacation, so if you enjoy the gym like I do, I would suggest going every other day while on vacation. It is not fair to let yourself not relax while on vacation. Keep your fitness up while still sleeping in and getting your tan on!

It comes down to what works best for yourself while your on vacation. Use the activities at the hotel and the beach as your gym and fitness equipment. Don't push yourself to go to the gym if you know you will be staying active in other ways. The bottom line is, have fun!

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Walnut and Brown Sugar Rugelach

Happy holiday's everyone! Sorry I haven't posted in a couple days. I have been running around finishing up my semester and getting ready for Hanukkah. For those of you that do not celebrate Hanukkah, it started this past Saturday, December 8th. We always do a traditional dinner of latkes, roast, apple sauce and much, much more. Needless to say, I am glad I wore leggings during the meal. I was in charge of making dessert, so I tested my baking ability with homemade Rugelach. Rugelach is a a pastry that is rolled up like a crescent and filled with almost anything. I have had chocolate, jelly, nuts, and a mixture.

For this dessert I followed a recipe by Martha Stewart. Before I list the directions I would like to say, this dough is extremely sticky! It says to chill for a minimum of 2 hours to 3 months, what a range huh? I did 2 hours because I was on a time crunch, but next time I am going to do 4-5 hours. If you decide to make this dessert give yourself enough time for the refrigeration process.

Ingredients 

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 bar (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for rolling
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar

Directions 

1. In a food processor, blend butter, cream cheese, granulated sugar, and salt until well combined. Add flour, and pulse just until a dough forms. Divide dough in half; flatten into disks, and wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours and up to 2 days, or freeze up to 3 months (thaw before baking).

2.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks set in upper and lower thirds. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. In a small bowl, combine egg with 1 teaspoon water to make an egg wash.

3. Working with one disk at a time, place dough on lightly floured parchment paper, and roll out into an 11-inch circle (about 1/4 inch thick), dusting lightly with flour as needed. Using a large dinner plate as a guide, cut around dough to make a perfect circle; trim off and discard scraps. Brush circles with egg wash; dividing evenly, sprinkle with walnuts and brown sugar.

4. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut each circle into 16 equal triangles. Starting from the wide end, roll up each triangle of dough; place on lined baking sheets, seam side down. Brush rolls with egg wash.

5. Bake until golden brown, 30 to 32 minutes. Transfer rugelach to a wire rack to cool completely. 

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Holiday Burn

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and stuffed themselves into a food-coma. After eating so many mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, rolls, turkey and pie it's time to work it all off with a great thanksgiving workout brought to you by Amanda Russell. I tend to use a lot of her videos on my blog because she has fast workouts that really let you feel the burn. I did this workout the day after Thanksgiving and my legs felt like jello the next day. Make sure to give yourself plenty of room to do this workout. At the end you will defiantly feel like you burned off all of the calories from the Thanksgiving day meal.

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Reese Puff Cupcakes

Who loves peanut butter? Who loves chocolate and peanut butter, together? I know I do! These cupcakes are sure to give you a sugar rush as well as stop your sweet tooth craving. They are super easy to make and look like they came from a professional bakery.

Ingredients
1 Box of Yellow Cake Mix (need water, 3 eggs, and vegetable oil)
Cocoa Powder
Creamy Peanut Butter
1 Stick of Butter
3 Cups Confectioner Sugar
1 Bag of Semisweet Chocolate Chips
1 Box of Reese Puffs
Vanilla Extract
Milk (Skim or 1%)
Foil

Directions 
1. Follow directions on cake mix box for cupcakes. Once all of the ingredients are well blended add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the batter. Blend until there is no yellow cake mix showing.
2. After the batter is finished mixing spoon the batter into cupcake tins. The cake mix should make 24 cupcakes.
3. Bake the cupcakes as directed on the back of dry with the cake mix box. Once done, let them cool for about 15 minutes.
4. While the cupcakes are cooling lay down foil enough to fit 24 cupcakes. Measure out 1/3 cup of peanut butter and 2/3 cup of chocolate chips. Melt them in a microwave save bowl together. Mine took about 2 minutes to melt stirring every 30 seconds.
5. Once the chocolate and peanut butter are melted dip the tops of the cupcakes in and set on the foil allowing them to dry for about 20 minutes.

6. While the chocolate is drying start on the icing.

7. In a mixing bowl blend together a stick of room temperature butter and 1/3 of a cup peanut butter. Once these are well blended slowly add in 3 cups of confectioner sugar.
8. The icing will look lumpy then add in 1 tablespoon vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon milk. Blend the icing on a high speed until it starts to form. If the icing is too thin add some more confectioner sugar, if it is too thick add more milk.
9. Once the icing is done and the chocolate is cool use a small mellon baller to scoop the icing and place it on top of the chocolate. Then use the cereal, Reese Puffs to decorate the icing scoop!

Enjoy... 

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Who Said One is Better than the Other?

Some people have a preference for yoga over pilates, but they both promote heart health, weight loss, strength and flexibility. Yoga provides little cardio benefit as it is a slower performed exercise whereas pilates kicks up your heart rate as your body feels the burn. As for weight loss, both pilates and yoga are beneficial, but in a 50 minute yoga class you will burn 150 calories and in a 50 minute pilates class you will burn 175 calories. Yoga helps a person with their flexibility and pilates helps challenge a persons strength with flexibility added in the mix. It's up to you which work out to try, but I have added two of my favorite YouTube yoga and pilates videos for you to try. Please comment and let me know which you prefer!

I prefer a pilates workout when I have the energy, but when I want to relax I do yoga. 

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Six Years & Cupcakes

This past weekend I spent a wonderful night in Bethesda for my six year anniversary with my boyfriend. Along with the beautiful weather, we spent the day shopping and of course stopping in for some cupcakes. Unfortunately, I cannot duplicate these cupcakes because they are that perfect. If you have never been to Georgetown Cupcakes, I HIGHLY suggest the visit. We purchased one pumpkin spice and one caramel apple along with a cup of Illy coffee (my favorite!). They have tons to choose from, but being that it is fall I had to go with the seasonal specialities. The caramel apple had chunks of natural apple and was filled with caramel and the pumpkin spice tasted like pumpkin pie topped with whipped cream. If you are looking for something to do one weekend don't hesitate to go to Georgetown Cupcakes. They'll be sure to cure your sweet tooth and keep you coming back for more!

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The Gym Excuse

When it comes to getting active, people will come up with as many excuses as possible to avoid hitting the gym. Gyms are expensive and not always right around the corner. I have a hectic schedule of working two jobs and going to school full time, so I make sure to get my workout done in the morning. I enjoy the treadmill, but others find machines boring. So what's the alternative? Workouts that can be done at home! Thanks to WebMd, I have listed some ways to build your body on a budget.

Your equipment 
1. Soup cans or jugs of water for weights 
2. Substitute a countertop for a push up bench 
3. Pantyhose for resistance bands: loop a pair of pantyhose around the balls of your feet and pull back with both hands as if you were using a rowing machine.

The exercises
1. Squats: Standing upright, feet wider than shoulders apart, with arms extended forward or hands on hips for balance, squat down. Push knees outward as you descend, until thighs are parallel with the floor. 
2. Partial-body push-ups: Knees on the floor pushing your upper body up from the floor
3. Jumping Jacks: add weights into this exercise to build muscle in your arms 
4. Chair Crunches: Sit on a chair with hands under your behind, arms straight, and fingers facing inward toward one another. Keeping your knees bent at a 90-degree angle, lift your feet off the floor and tuck your knees in toward your chest, bending the upper body slightly toward your knees. 

Here is a video to guide you through an at home workout routine. Make sure to stretch for about five minutes before beginning your workout. Once you get the routine down, add weights (or soup cans!) into your workout to build and sculpt your arms. There is no excuse to not workout when there are cheap and effective ways to sculpt your body at home! 

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Sweet and Salty

Already made cookie dough is the best invention for those who love to pop some cookies in the oven, or just take a spoon full late at night! I was sitting at my internship today when it hit me; I will add crumbled pretzels to the already made chocolate chip cookie dough. This will create a cookie that is soft in the inside with a crunch of pretzel in every bite you take. The recipe is super easy and simple there should be no hesitation to make these! 

What you need: 

• 1 roll of Nestle chocolate chip slice and bake cookies
• Snyder's old fashioned pretzels 

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 

2. Take cookie dough and put it in a mixing bowl 

3. Use a large spoon to move the cookie dough around to soften it 

4. Use 2-3 pretzels and place them in a zip block bag and break them up using the back of a spoon or ice cream scooper. Make sure they are small pieces, but not crumbs. 

5. Add the pretzel pieces into the cookie dough

6. Blend them together and then spoon the cookie dough onto a baking sheet 

7. Bake for 13 minutes 

8. Place on cooling rack and then enjoy! 

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Almond Butter or Peanut Butter: Who Wins in Overall Nutrition?

I am a huge peanut butter fan! In fact, I use to munch on apples and peanut butter everyday as an afternoon snack, but eventually got burnt out from the repetitive flavor. Although when it comes to peanut butter I always make sure to eat all natural forms. As we all know peanut butter is just peanuts, there is no reason to have unnatural additives. I recently have heard almond butter is healthier than peanut butter, so I decided to check it out for myself. According to Self, the difference between peanut butter and almond butter are the micronutrients. Almond butter provides 40% of your daily vitamin E, 25% of your magnesium, and 8% of both calcium and iron. What is so special about vitamin E? Well, vitamin E prevents heart disease and unwanted clogging in your arteries. Almond butter is packed with more micronutrients than peanut butter, which makes it the winner for overall healthiness. Now I just need to think of a recipe I can sneak this smart food into! If you are wondering a great healthy snack have a portion size of pretzels and almond butter for 200 calories. This will be a boost of vitamin intake for the day and be sure to cure your sweet tooth. I have also posted the Trader Joes version of almond butter that apparently outdoes the rest in flavors.

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

On a cold fall morning there is nothing more enjoyable then a pumpkin muffin with your coffee. Me being the chocoholic I am, had to add a little bit of sweetness. These simple pumpkin chocolate chip muffins bring a warmth to your home, as well as a smile to your face. 

Ingredients 

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar 

2 large eggs 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

3/4 cup solid packed, canned pumpkin puree

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions 

1. Preheat oven to 350 and line 12 muffin cups with liners 

2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves nutmeg and salt. Set aside. 

3. In the bowl of your mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. When the mixture is smooth and creamy add eggs one at a time mixing in between. 

4. Continue mixing on medium adding the vanilla and pumpkin puree. Then add your bowl of dry ingredients adding a little at a time with the mixer on low.
5. Fold in the chocolate chips making sure everything is well blended. 
6. Scoop the mixture into the liners and bake for 18-20 minutes. 

Before the oven...

Enjoy! 

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Interval What?

On my last Fitness 101 posting I wrote about my average workout routine. I run/walk 3 miles 5 days a week and rest on the weekend. When I say run/walk, I mean interval training. For those of you who are not familiar with it, it is when you add bursts of speed into your workout. This workout allows you to play with your speed and mix up your workout. So what's the benefit to this type of cardio? Well, according to the Journal of Obesity, it targets your waistline and can help you loose stubborn abdominal fat. Below is a chart for a 45 minute interval training schedule for the treadmill. Not only will interval training burn more calories, but it will keep your mind and body busy while you sweat away! Feel free to also set the treadmill on a small incline, but not too steep as it can cause shin splints.

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Apple Cinnamon Cookies With Maple Glaze

A girlfriend of mine and I love to bake when we have the time. We found this recipe for Apple Cinnamon Cookies with Maple Glaze thanks to How To; Simplify. Let me just say, they taste like a hand held apple pie. Grab a tall glass of warm cider and enjoy! Ah fall... 

For the cookies:

• 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 large apples, chopped

For the glaze:

• 1 tablespoon melted butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1-2 tablespoons water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray. 
2. Cream together the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl until light in color. Add egg and sour cream; stir to combine. Add remaining ingredients, except apple, and stir until combined. Gently fold in the apples.
3. Drop the cookie mixture by the tablespoonful onto the prepared baking sheet.
4. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the tops are dry.
5. Make the glaze: Whisk together all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Add water until the glaze reaches the desired consistency.
6. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.
7. Once cookies are cool, place them on a large piece of foil and drizzle them with the maple glaze. 

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